You can spot some of the most common nutrient deficiencies- if you know what to look for.  But don't wait.  Left unchecked, some nutrient deficiencies can turn into big health problems, like fatigue, memory loss, osteoporosis, even heart disease!

Is your body trying to tell you something? Here's how to tell:

If you have.....                                                                           Then you need more.......
Cold hands                                                                                  Magnesium
White spots on nails                                                                    Zinc
Soft or brittle nails                                                                       Magnesium
Bleeding gums                                                                             Vitamin C
Thyroid swelling                                                                           Iodine
High Blood Pressure                                                                     Magnesium and Coenzyme Q10
"Chicken" skin on upper arms                                                      Essential fatty acids
Red scaly skin on face                                                                  Vitamin B2 (riboflavin)
Premature gray hair                                                                     Vitamin B12
Dermatitis around nose                                                                Vitamin B6
Sugar cravings                                                                             Chromium
Muscle cramps                                                                              Magnesium
Frequent colds                                                                             Zinc and Vitamin C
Dry eyes                                                                                       Vitamin A
Night blindness                                                                            Zinc and Vitamin A
Shaking hands                                                                             Magnesium and Vitamin B1
Carpal tunnel syndrome                                                               Vitamin B6
Reduced smell and taste                                                              Zinc
Hair loss                                                                                       Biotin, Zinc, and Essential fatty acids

Shop Our Online Apothecary to shop for these and other nutritional supplements.

 Ideally, your diet has all of the nutrients that your body needs. Unfortunately, this does not happen. That is why it is important to consume nutritional supplements to account for deficiencies of these vital nutrients. Otherwise, we face health issues such as a weak immune system, a lack in energy, chronic fatigue syndrome, or the start of a more serious health disorder.
In an ideal world, you would get nutrients, along with your phytonutrients, just from eating a wholesome diet that included organically grown fruits and vegetables. But this rarely happens. Healthy eating habits and availability of easy fast foods cause most of us to ignore the harmful effects of our poor diet. And even if you did eat your daily fruits and vegetables, the produce that you buy from the store has little nutritional value since they are picked green (before they were ripe), and they were grown in nutrient depleted soils.


Examples in which dietary supplements play an important role in giving positive health benefits:

- If you are a woman over the age of 45, you are more likely to suffer the effects of menopause. Menopause brings change in the hormone levels and consequently thinning of the bones. Osteoporosis leads to fractures unless women take calcium, magnesium, vitamin D, vitamin K and strontium supplements regularly.

- If you know that your diet is poor and that you are not getting enough vitamins and minerals from your regular diet. You need to have 3 to 4 servings of fresh vegetables and fruits every day. If eating a lot of salad is not on your daily menu, then you need dietary supplements.

- If you are pregnant or trying to get pregnant, dietary supplements ensure that the developing fetus gets appropriate daily requirement of essential nutrients. For example, iron and folate deficiency could cause neural tube defects or poor mental development in the baby. Vitamin C deficiency leads to poor development of gums and Vitamin D deficiency causes impaired development of bones. If you have other pregnancy-related disorders like pica, reduced appetite, nausea etc., you would most probably be not eating right. Therefore, dietary supplements make up for what is lacking in your diet so that your baby is healthy.

- If you suffer from diseases that interfere with normal absorption of nutrients from the diet, as is often the case as we  age, supplements provide the additional quantity required in order to make up for reduced uptake.

- Dietary supplements help in speedy recovery from any surgery, by providing the recommended daily allowance. This is especially true for the vitamins in the B group.

While there are many proven benefits to adding dietary supplements to your diet, there are a few precautions you should take. As a rule, never use a dietary supplement without actually finding out whether you need it or not. That is, consult your pharmacist about whether you suffer from nutritional deficiency that can be corrected only with supplements. Overdose of vitamins may be harmful. Always read the product information and use those that are specific to your needs.

An evaluation of the importance of nutritional supplements.

What supplements are the most important depends on your gender and your age. If your diet is lacking, a basic multivitamin is a good idea, which simply assures that you are getting the recommended daily doses of a number of essential vitamins. Beyond this, if you are a woman, I recommend you consider both calcium (500-600 mg twice a day) and magnesium (200 mg twice a day). Calcium is needed for bone health, and while we need approximately 1,200 mg a day, the average American woman has approximately 500 mg a day in her diet. Magnesium is needed for bone health, and it also counteracts the constipating effects of calcium. If you are premenopausal, you will be glad to know that calcium and magnesium have been shown to improve menstrual symptoms, including cramping, breast tenderness, mood swings, and even food cravings. (Chocolate is actually rich in magnesium, and it has been hypothesized that the need for magnesium may be why women crave chocolate around their periods.) Men do not need to supplement with calcium but should try to get 1,000 mg daily in their diet.

There are two other supplements for both men and women, and fish oil is one of them. Generally in this country, our diets have far more omega-6 fatty acids than omega-3 fatty acids. Oversimplified, omega-6's are the bad fats and omega-3's are the healthy fats. If your diet is not rich in fish and other omega-3's, you should consider supplementing with 1,000 mg of fish oil a day, being certain that each pill contains at least 200 mg of DHA and 200 mg of EPA. Increasing omega-3's decreases inflammation in your system, which can affect everything from heart disease to cancer.

Lastly, we are learning that many Americans are actually deficient in vitamin D, and this can cause a huge variety of symptoms including muscle aches and fatigue. You can ask your doctor to check a vitamin D

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